Chicago Loses Bid for 2016 Olympic Games — COPENHAGEN — The International Olympic Committee delivered a stunning blow to Chicago's bid for the 2016 Olympics, knocking it out of the voting in the first round Friday, leaving Rio de Janeiro and Madrid waiting for the announcement which city will host the Games.

Live - 2016 Olympics decision day — (Not all contributions can be used; UK mobiles only; network rates apply) — 1635: We have a winner, people. No need for IOC president Jacque Rogge to use his vote and that means everyone - well, everyone except the Madrid and Rio delegates of course - can relax.

Chicago Loses Olympic Bid; CNN Freaks Out: “WHAT!?” — CNN's Tony Harris is so pumped-up as the Olympic Committee is about to announce their first cuts. This reminds me of his despairing reaction to the Cambridge, MA cop who “acted stupidly” announcing that he and his department …

Chicago shocked early, then Rio wins '16 Games — Lobbying by Obamas goes for naught as Windy City is first city eliminated — Oct. 2: Chicago is eliminated by the International Olympic Committee in early voting to host the 2016 games. NBC News reports. — COPENHAGEN - Finally, South America gets an Olympics.

A defeat in Denmark — There's a reason the president is rarely dispatched to a summit whose outcome is uncertain. — And Chicago's elimination in the first round of voting has to raise questions about whether the White House was getting accurate information about how competitive this was from Chicago's Olympics organizers.

The Wizard of Beck — Let us take a trip back into history. Not ancient history. Recent history. It is the winter of 2007. The presidential primaries are approaching. The talk jocks like Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity and the rest are over the moon about Fred Thompson.

McCain's mission: A GOP makeover — Fresh from a humbling loss in last year's presidential election, Sen. John McCain is working behind-the-scenes to reshape the Republican Party in his own center-right image. — McCain is recruiting candidates, raising money for them and hitting the campaign trail on their behalf.

Mission Not Accomplished — Stocks are up. Ben Bernanke says that the recession is over. And I sense a growing willingness among movers and shakers to declare “Mission Accomplished” when it comes to fighting the slump. It's time, I keep hearing, to shift our focus from economic stimulus to the budget deficit.

Senate Ethics Committee investigating Ensign — WASHINGTON (CNN) - The Senate Ethics Committee is investigating Sen. John Ensign, and allegations of improper conduct stemming from an affair with the wife of a former aide. — “Whenever allegations of improper conduct are brought to the attention …

Is Conservatism Brain-Dead? — Over his decades as a columnist, lecturer, TV host and debater, William F. Buckley Jr. lost his cool in public only once — when he threatened to sock Gore Vidal “in your goddamn face” on the third night of their joint appearances on ABC during the ill-fated 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

Bad day for USA. Good day for GOP? — Remember when Republicans accused Democrats of rooting against America? — Judging from the volume of exultant Tweets and press releases from Republicans today — you'd think they'd won a doubleheader, what with Chicago losing the Olympics and the unemployment numbers rising unexpectedly.